Hunter's Dawning
by Kit-cat99
Summary: Post Season Three. Rick and Co pick up a girl on a supply run. She gives him a run for his money (figuratively speaking of course) but also proves to hold a connection with another member of the group which may put a dampener on any relations. Rick/OC possible future other pairings
1. Chapter 1

**Hunter's Dawning  
**

Summary: Post season 3. A supply run becomes a recruiting run when Rick ends up picking up a woman. She holds his attention fairly well and helps him forget his guilt. Only problem is she's got an attachment to another member of the group. A rift may form and a problem might occur. When tension rises, all bets are off and it's the last one standing who gets to be the victor.

Rating: M (violence, language and mature themes)

Disclaimer: I don't own the Walking Dead characters, just those I make up.

* * *

Rick stood by the car, hands on his hips, one hovering over his gun as a precaution, eyes surveying the surroundings. His tongue ran across his dry lips as he squinted in the bright sunlight. He looked behind him when there was noise and watched through the shop window as Michonne dropped supplies into a bag. Further down the street, he knew Glenn was doing his own searching. They just had to be fast and silent and get back to the prison.

He wondered if bringing all those people back was really such a good idea. Their already small stock of food and supplies was hardly lasting enough for his group and then he brought women and children for Woodbury to stay in the prison. He was just glad for Tyrell taking charge of that group. Rick had gotten in a private chat with him, apologizing for his behaviour the first time they met. Something interesting came from the new group. Rick was no longer seeing Lori. Whether it was a good thing or not really depended on the day and how he felt. He still missed and longed for his wife.

He tensed up with the sound of a motor reached his ears. Ducking down, he drew his gun out and looked around, listening to the approaching vehicle. There was whooping and cheers coming from whoever was in that vehicle and Rick frowned as he looked around his car. There was movement at his side and he glanced over to find Michonne crouching down next to him with an irritated look on her face.

A large pick up truck came barrelling down the street, bumping into whatever cars were sitting in it's way. It drove right on past them and stopped at the far end. Rick and Michonne stayed low and moved closer, wondering who these people were and how they'd have to deal with them. Rick looked back, saw Glenn looking out of a store, and waved him back into it. The young man gave a nod and ducked back inside.

"Now this here is one good spot!" A man shouted from the truck, jumping out of the bed of it. He stumbled across the ground and paused then put his hands over his head in victory. "TA DA!"

"Idiots." Michonne muttered. The man opened the bed up and both onlookers paused in surprise as the other two men in the back pushed out a woman. She gave a muffled yelp, cloth across her mouth, as she fell down and hit the ground with a thud. Her hands were tied behind her back but her feet were free. There were a few blood splatters on her gag and a couple of scraps on her face and arms but she didn't seem to be in too bad of a shape. She looked around at the rednecks around her, watching them watch her.

"What say you, sweetheart? This place seem alright to you?" The man asked, hauling the woman up off the concrete.

"Don't think she's got a choice now, Bubba." One of the other men called out. He held up a crossbow and waved it with a smile. "Ain't got her fancy toys on her now."

"Good point, Junior!" Bubba exclaimed, laughing. He put his arm around the woman's shoulders and squeezed them hard, receiving a harsh look from her. "You's gonna be the prettiest little bride, sweetheart."

Rick slowly lifted his gun, coming to the conclusion that these men were more monsters than men. He was caught off guard, and likely so was everyone else, when the woman stomped down on Bubba's foot and rammed her elbow at him with as much force as she could considering her position. He yelped and cursed, throwing her to the side. She fell backwards and rolled, tucking up and slipping her tied hands around to the front.

"Alright mother fuckers, party's over." The woman declared, pulling the cloth off her mouth and glaring at the rednecks.

"Son of a bitch, GET HER!" Bubba yelled.

That was the cue. Rick and Michonne fired at the men, taking out the ones in the bed of the truck. The woman looked surprised but quickly reached around the bodies to grab the crossbow and case of darts. Bubba moved to grab her and ended up shot in the back. The driver in the truck clearly freaked as the shots were fired and sped off as his buddy fell.

"PUSSY!" The woman yelled after him. She put her stuff down and used a bolt to cut at the rope around her wrists as she looked around, trying to spot her helper. Rick stood up and walked over, Michonne following wearily behind him. "So it was you two doing all that shooting?"

"Just lending a hand to someone who seemed like they needed it." Rick explained. The woman grinned and shrugged. She growled in frustration as she had struggled with moving her hands right to cut through the rope. Rick watched her, slightly amused, then took out a knife and stepped forward, offering to do the job. She looked at him cautiously for a moment then held out her bound wrists, sighing when he sliced the rope easily.

"So what was that all about?" Michonne asked, nodding at the bodies on the ground.

"Oh these dumbasses?" The woman asked. She shook her head and picked up her things. She slung the bolt case across her back and looked over the crossbow, checking to make sure none of the rednecks had screwed with it. "They found me on the highway and knocked me out. Think Bubba wanted to marry me and turn me into his baby breeding machine or something." She looked disgusted as she looked down at the dead body before kicking it hard in the ribs.

"You got a place? People?" Rick asked.

"I...had people." The woman explained slowly. "Two brothers. I lost them...God, it's been like a year. Started out with them in this thing but shit happened and we got separated."

"You been looking for them?" Michonne asked.

"Yeah, on and off." The woman replied, looking around. "Those sons of a bitch ain't exactly the easiest folks to find. They know how to cover their tracks." She brushed her long brown hair back and licked her lips before looking at them. "Thanks for the help."

"You don't really seem to have anything." Rick remarked, looking her over.

"My shit's back at these idiots little camp." The woman explained. "I just gotta get back there before Marv gets back and packs everything up. Considering the direction he went in...he's fleeing like a chicken with it's head cut off. Got a bit of time."

"We can take you back there." Rick declared, earning a sharp look from Michonne which he ignored. "Are there others there?"

"Nope, whole other reason why these guys are idiots." The woman replied. "They left the place unguarded." She paused when there was a groan and looked down to see Bubba twitching. She took a bolt from the case and slammed it down through the back of his head. She looked up at the people in front of her. "Name's Dawn."

_***TWD***TWD***TWD***TWD***TWD***_

Dawn got out of the car when it pulled up to a site with several wrecked cars and a few weak looking tents. Rick, Glenn and Michonne got out and looked around, hands on their guns. Dawn kicked aside a dead raccoon and then ducked into a tent. Rick watched her move around the small site, gathering up all the supplies her captors had. She was pretty, he would admit it. Cowgirl boots and jeans that looked as if they had, at one point, fit perfectly but were now a little loose. She wore a black leather worn out jacket over some red shirt. Her brown hair hung limply from lack of washing but still looked pretty, framing around her dirty and scratched face nicely.

He secretly enjoyed the moments when she came out of each tent and smiled at him. He almost felt like smiling back. She was a strange woman but she seemed to have not let the events of the world turn her cold.

"These help you folks at all?" Dawn asked, walking over with bags of canned food balancing on top of a case of water.

"Uh...yeah." Rick replied, blinking. He stumbled slightly when the woman shoved everything into his arms and walked back to the tents. He looked at Glenn and Michonne, both of whom shrugged in answer to his unasked question.

"Take care of yourselves." Dawn stated, slinging a rucksack over her shoulder and kicking down a tent. She smiled at them and gave a nod. "And thanks again." The trio watched her start walking away, unsure of what to do.

"Should we just let her go?" Glenn whispered.

"We don't owe her anything." Michonne muttered.

"She did just give us all this, Michonne." Rick countered. "She's on her own."

"Maybe she likes it that way." Michonne argued with a frown. "Don't forget there's almost two dozen people back at the prison."

"One more isn't going to change anything." Glenn sided with Rick. "Besides, if she has been on her own, and she's got that crossbow, she could be really helpful."

"Dawn!" Rick called after the walking woman, coming to his conclusion. Dawn stopped and turned back to look at them. "You can come back with us to our place. There's room enough."

"I ain't giving you that stuff for you to feel obligated to take me in." Dawn pointed out, shaking her head. "It's too damn heavy for me to carry all of it."

"Either way, I'm inviting you to come with us." Rick stated. Dawn watched them all, contemplating her answer. Glenn nodded his encouragement and Michonne kept her nearly ever present irritation on the front. Dawn bit her lip and stepped forward slowly then carefully walked over to them. Rick smiled at her and put the stuff in the trunk.

"Long as you're sure it ain't gonna be a problem." Dawn insisted.

"It won't, don't worry." Rick assured her. Dawn nodded, still looking uncertain. She didn't like to rely on other people, nor did she particularly trust a lot of people after the events of the last year. But these guys weren't instantly taking her weapon and they seemed friendly enough, Michonne's mood aside.

So she got back into the car with them and watched out the window as they drove across the deserted roads. She listened as Glenn explained the prison, how they had fortified it, how many people they had. She listened with curiosity as he gave a brief summary of the troubles that had just occurred but his assurances that things were better, dealt with. She didn't fully believe it but she let it go and watched back out the window.

The first thing she saw when they crossed the gate and exited the car was the motorcycle. She froze in her spot before she quickly went over to it. Recognition warmed her as she lovingly stroked the handle of the bike.

"I would be careful what you do with that thing, Dawn." Glenn stated, watching her. "Daryl doesn't react well to people touching his stuff."

"I know." Dawn mused, almost giddy. "Only...this ain't his."

"What?" Several voices questioned and Dawn turned to look at them. A couple of girls had joined the group and all of them were looking at the brunette woman strangely.

"It is now." A gruff voice called out, followed by the sound of a heavy door closing. Dawn paused and a smile crossed her face. "Now who's been letting some woman touch my bike?"

"I saw it first Darylene." Dawn shot back, turning her head to look at the angry man. Daryl paused and stared at her while everyone else looked on in confusion.

"Jesus Christ." Daryl muttered.

"Lord's fucking name, Dar!" Dawn snapped, pointing at him.

"Screw you, bible bitch." Daryl laughed, walking over to the woman and yanking her to him in a hug. Dawn laughed and returned the hug tightly, a tear slipping from her eye. "Knew you weren't dead."

"Only almost once." Dawn sighed, her shoulders slacking as some tension wore off. "You did try and look for me though, right?"

"Yeah, Merle got real cranky about it." Daryl replied. "We just found bodies of the guys that we figured had taken you."

"I didn't do that, they pissed off the wrong folks." Dawn explained. "Then those guys pissed me off and then I was alone and then there was this army guy and then he went all sacrificing and shit, alone again for a bit, then some crazy ass redneck fucks and now those guys." She nodded at Rick, Glenn and Michonne and Daryl glanced over at them as well. "So...Merle here too?"

"No." Daryl sighed. Dawn tilted her head then frowned before hugging him again. Daryl bit his lip, not wanting to go through this in front of everyone. He patted her head, smoothing down her dirty hair then sniffed. "Woman, you need a shower. You fucking stink."

"Oh bite me!" Dawn snapped, slapping his arm. The insult effectively curbed her desire to cry though as she stepped back and gave him a half irritated, half grateful look.

"Grab your shit and I'll show you round...that is if you're staying." Daryl stated slowly, looking over at the others.

"She's staying." Rick affirmed, nodding.

"Good." Daryl mused, shooting his friend a grateful expression. He grabbed one of the bags from Dawn. "Come on lil sis." The line caused the others to pause and watch them all over again just as they were all getting bored of what was going on. Daryl led Dawn to the door and glanced back at her. "Good to see your clumsiness and idiocy didn't get that bow taken."

"Fuck off." Dawn growled just before they went through the door and it closed behind them.

* * *

So new Walking Dead story for me. The idea sort of came to me one day and I thought it would be funny to try out. So who caught the Boondock Saints reference? Had to do it, too much into those boys, arg. Gonna need to do a story with them soon.


	2. Suspicious Minds

**Suspicious Minds  
**

So let's get some "Daryl's sister in the prison" moments shall we? Oh and, everyone's favourite thing in the world also, Daryl and the baby lol.

* * *

"Did you know?"

"How would I know?"

"You've known him longest."

"I thought you guys were close."

"I don't think anyone's ever known."

"There was never anything said."

The whispers were all over the cell block. Dawn was rather impressed that the people didn't have anything better to do then to whisper about her. Not that she particularly minded, it wasn't anything new afterall. Her brothers, while not caring about school so much themselves, had been adament that she go, anything to keep her from being a stripper or something, she figured. Nothing more unnerving then walking into a strip club and finding your sister on the pole. So she had enough of whispers in school, being the redneck trailer girl and all.

She was a little surprised that no one was even aware that she had even existed. Never a single mention, not even to Rick or Carol who, by all the sounds of things, were the ones that were closest to Daryl. She just supposed it was easier on him and Merle to not think about her, in case she had been dead. She had done the same on several occasions so she couldn't fault him.

"Dear lord, don't tell me you knocked someone up." Dawn gasped when she climbed the stairs to find her brother holding a baby and looking out the window.

"Nah, she ain't mine. She's Rick's little girl." Daryl explained, rolling his eyes. He walked over to Dawn and turned the child slightly. "We all just take turns with her, save Carol and Beth from being the only constant caregivers."

"Aww, look at that, you get to be Uncle Daryl afterall." Dawn teased. Daryl punched her arm lightly and she just smiled at him. "So what's her name?"

"Lil Ass Kicker." Daryl replied.

"What's her real name?" Dawn asked.

"Judith." Daryl muttered, shaking his head. Dawn smiled and looked at Judith as the baby opened her eyes. "She was born in this prison. Mom didn't make it."

"Well that sucks." Dawn mused, poking the baby's nose. "So she's Rick's and that kid with the attitude is Rick's, right?"

"Yeah, Carl. He's got plenty reason to have that attitude." Daryl explained.

"He threatened to shoot me if I tried anything." Dawn pointed out. Daryl paused and looked at her. "He's very very upset over the fact that I got to keep my crossbow."

"Aww hell." Daryl groaned, running a hand over his face. "Stupid kid." He looked down at Judith as she watched him. "Your brother's gonna get himself in trouble there, Ass Kicker." The baby giggled and waved her arms in the air. Dawn tilted her head and smiled slightly, finding it amusing and oddly calming that this baby was here, in her brother's arms.

At least until it cried.

"What happaned?" Dawn asked.

"Guess she's hungry." Daryl muttered, looking around. "Fuck, her shit isn't around, here take her."

"What?" Dawn stared at her brother and stepped back. "Can't I go find the shit?"

"I know where it is, you don't, just take her." Daryl instructed, passing the baby into the woman's hands. Dawn blinked and stared at Judith as the teary eyed infant squirmed. "Fuck sake's Dawn, just hold her closer or you're gonna drop her."

"Bite me." Dawn growled as she cautiously pulled the baby closer. She shifted her hold on Judith and held the little girl on her hip. Her mind was singing praises that the baby was old enough to be able to hold her head up on her own. Daryl nodded and quickly went off to retrieve the formula. He was more or less just aiming to bug Dawn. He honestly could have just brought Judith with him but it always entertained him to witness her interacting with children. She never had the slightest clue as to how to go about it.

It was what Rick walked into when he came up the stairs, alerted by his child's noises, and found Dawn once more holding the infant at arm's length, looking close to crying herself as she made attempts to calm the child. He honestly wasn't sure if he should laugh or be worried. While the position could have easily seen the baby cropped, Dawn did seem to have a firm hold on her.

"What are you doing?" Rick asked, genuinely curious. He was glad when his voice brought a calm moment as his daughter paused in her tantrum and looked around to find him. She cooed at him and he walked over, taking pity on Dawn and taking the young child from her.

"Daryl told me to hold her while he got her formula." Dawn explained, moving herself away from Judith and watching the child with a suspicious look. "Don't think she really likes me."

"Course she does, she's probably just hungry." Rick assured. Dawn didn't looked convinced however and Rick could only laugh as he gazed down at Judith who was currently nuzzling herself against his chest.

"It's not just her, all children dislike me." Dawn admitted.

"Now that can't be true." Rick tried to reason.

"No no, it is." Dawn argued. Rick looked at her and raised an eyebrow. "I have years of experience round them to realize when they just don't like me. She's no exception."

"I'm sure you've known at least one child who..." Rick started but stopped when Dawn shook her head. "Well...uh...huh."

"It's not like it's a big deal, I just don't go round kids is all." Dawn remarked, shrugging. She put her hands in her pockets and looked around, things getting silent between them now. Judith started her sniffling again and Dawn shot her gaze warily onto the child. Her mind screaming for her brother to return and she was never more happy to see him than when he finally came up the stairs with the bottle in his hand.

"Couldn't take it then?" Daryl taunted, grinning. He held out the bottle to Rick who took it and began feeding his daughter. Dawn huffed and crossed her arms, glaring at her sibling. "She tell you the story of the time she babysat?"

"Don't you fucking dare." Dawn growled dangerously.

"Later." Daryl muttered to Rick, who couldn't help but grin in anticipation. Dawn huffed and shook her head.

_***TWD***TWD***TWD***TWD***TWD***_

"So what's this about you threatening to shoot my sister?" Carl jumped and turned away from watching the fence to see Daryl coming his way. The young boy took a deep breath and sighed before looking away. Daryl sighed and stood next to him, looking out at the field as the sun came over the trees. "I'm not gonna make you take it back."

"You're not?" Carl asked.

"You do what you feel you gotta do." Daryl remarked. He squinted his eyes against the sunlight, training his sight on a walker. "She ain't bad, not gonna hurt any of us." Carl just shrugged, his hand resting lightly on his gun. "But you best have a damn good reason if you ever do point that gun at her, you hear me?"

"She better not give me a reason." Carl stated simply. Daryl looked down at him for a few minutes but the kid kept his gaze out on the field. With nothing else to say, Daryl just walked off. He never had an intention of wasting time trying to convince Carl to take back what he had said. He knew his sister, knew her capabilities, and knew if she really wanted, she'd be able to convince the preteen that she wasn't a danger to the groups living in the prison.

The hunter walked through the entrance and took one step on the stairs before he paused as Rick, Dawn, Michonne and Tyreese came through from the cell block. A few people from the Woodbury group followed them and Daryl tilted his head in curiosity.

"What's this about?" He asked, walking down the stairs.

"Getting another supply run." Rick answered, putting his hands on his hips. "We didn't find much besides what Dawn had and Tyreese and his group are running low."

"They said I could go along." Dawn added in, looking at Daryl. She glanced back and then lowered her voice. "Then Michonne instantly volunteered to come too. Gotta say, never felt this untrusted since the time I put glue in some girl's hair at school."

"You'll be fine." Daryl assured, putting his arm over her shoulders. "Just stick with Rick."

"I ain't worrying about my safety." Dawn huffed, insulted. "I can take care of myself." Daryl grinned and punched her arm before letting her go. She rolled her eyes at him then looked at Tyreese and Rick. "So do we go now then?"

"Yeah, use as much of the daylight as we can." Tyreese stated. Dawn nodded her understanding and slung her crossbow over her back.

"We'll be back by dark." Rick informed Daryl. The two men split apart from the small bunch to discuss brief plans for what to happen while the away group was gone. Dawn watched them for a moment then looked around. She wondered if they were worried about the Governor coming back with a new army. From the stories she had been told and what she had gotten from the whispers, while the man was still alive, it didn't seem likely that he'd be able to convince more people to join him in his insanity against the group. That didn't rule out the possibility of running into him on a search and Daryl had made sure to let her know what the man had looked like in case she was, for some reason, ever on the away group and separated from the others. He had told her the Governor had killed Merle, left him for Daryl to find as a walker.

She was pretty sure at this point that if she ever met the man, she was putting a bolt in his head.

"Alright, let's get going." Rick announced, returning to the group. "Dawn, you're gonna ride with me and Michonne." Dawn smiled and nodded. She glanced over at her brother before following the group out of the prison and to the cars. Daryl went out after them to open and close the gate. He wasn't overly surprised to find Carl already at the gate, the young man's eyes narrowing on everyone but his father and Michonne.

"That kid always so friendly?" Dawn asked quietly, looking at Tyreese.

"He was better first time I met him." Tyreese explained quietly. "Lot of shit got done and he's gotten cold. Me and Sasha came through a hole in the back fencing a while ago with a couple others. He found us and brought us in but then Rick had a minor meltdown, he wasn't a really sane man at the time, just lost his wife." Dawn nodded slowly, glancing over at Rick. The Sheriff stood with his son, looking around at everything and talking quietly to the boy. "He got better, the kid got a bit worse. Can't really blame them though. This world makes everyone a little suspicious and hard."

"You ready?" Michonne asked, looking at Dawn. The two women looked at each other silently for a few moments, sizing up the other before Dawn nodded and walked over to get into the car.

* * *

Next chapter will have the supply run and some Rick and Dawn interactions. This story is going to have a few crazy Rick moments and a nice forewarning, Dawn's gonna slap him a few times over the course of the story. I already have a few moments thought out and a couple of them are actually rather funny.


End file.
